Sakuno was tired but relieved as she finally made it home with all the groceries that her grandma asked for. She carefully opened the gates, balancing the heavy plastic bag in her arms, and made her way to the front door. As she unlocked the door and stepped inside, she called out to her grandma, who usually greeted her with a warm smile.

"Obaa-chan, I'm home!" Sakuno called while removed her shoes and scanned the living room. But to her surprise, there was no sign of her grandma anywhere. 'Maybe she had gone out for a walk', Sakuno thought to herself. Her grandma had retired as a teacher a few years ago and now mostly spent her days gardening and taking care of the house.

Sakuno placed the groceries on the kitchen desk and headed upstairs to change out of her school uniform. She was about to open the door to her room when a male voice called her name from behind. "Ryuzaki."

Startled, Sakuno froze, clutching her school bag tightly. There was no man living with them, and her parents were still at work. Who could it be? Her mind became more negative when she remembered about the news about a pervert harassing a student.

Before she could react, she swung her bag at the person standing behind her. The person quickly raised his arm to shield himself and let out a grunt of pain. "Ow, Ryuzaki, it's me!" the familiar voice said. Trembling with fear, Sakuno opened her eyes and was shocked to see Ryoma standing in front of her, rubbing his sore arm.

"Ryoma-kun?"

At the same time, her grandma, Sumire, walked in through the front door and saw the commotion. She couldn't help but burst into laughter at the scene before her. "What on earth did you do to poor Ryoma, Sakuno?" she chuckled, shaking her head.

As they all gathered in the living room, Sakuno felt her cheeks flush with embarrassment as she apologized profusely to Ryoma. He just reassured her that he was fine. Sumire explained that Ryoma would be staying with them for a while since his house in Japan was unavailable anymore.

"Well, I'm going to prepare dinner. You both go upstairs and rest. Ryoma, you must have many things to unpack." Said Sumire.

"Yeah. Thanks anyway."

As Sumire bustled off to the kitchen to prepare dinner, Sakuno hurriedly excused herself to change out of her school uniform and assist her grandmother.

Meanwhile, Ryoma made himself comfortable in his room, continue unpacking his belongings with a calm and collected demeanor. Despite the awkward start to their encounter, he seemed unfazed by Sakuno's earlier outburst and exuded a sense of quiet confidence.

When Sakuno and Sumire finished cooking dinner, Sumire asked Sakuno to call Ryoma for dinner. Sakuno obliged, went to his room and knocked his door which is opposite from her room. "Ryoma-kun, dinner is ready." Ryoma opened the door and said okay. Ryoma left his messy room and they both went to the kitchen downstairs.

The cozy dining room was filled with the delicious aroma of home-cooked Japanese food, making everyone's mouths water in anticipation. Ryoma missed the taste of traditional Japanese cuisine. He had grown tired of the constant stream of Western food that his mother always cooked.

As they sat down at the table, Sumire placed a variety of dishes in front of them – yakizakana, spinash ohitachi, tempura, and miso soup. The colorful array of food looked absolutely mouth-watering.

"Thank you for the food", Ryoma said gratefully as he picked up his chopsticks.

Sakuno, who was seated beside him, watched him with a smile. "I hope you enjoy it, Ryoma-kun", she said softly.

Ryoma took his first bite of the tempura and closed his eyes in delight. The flavours exploded in his mouth. He couldn't help but let out a contented sigh.

Sakuno, beaming with pride, leaned forward. "Is it good, Ryoma-kun?" She asked eagerly, her eyes shining.

Ryoma looked up at her and nodded. Sakuno's face lit up and she blushed slightly. She was thrilled to see Ryoma enjoying the food. It made her heart swell with happiness.

Sumire, who had been watching the interaction between Ryoma and Sakuno, smiled warmly. She was pleased to see her granddaughter so happy, and she knew that Ryoma's presence had brought a sense of joy and excitement to their home.

The three of them continued to eat and chat, enjoying each other's company and the comfort of a home-cooked meal. The room was filled with laughter and the sound of clinking chopsticks, creating a warm and inviting atmosphere.

After they finished eating, Ryoma and Sakuno went to their respective rooms. Ryoma looked at his luggages and sighed, realizing he still not finished unpacking. Suddenly, he remembered that his father had mentioned giving him a gift, so he began searching through his belongings.

After rummaging through his luggages, Ryoma finally found a black drawstring bag hidden in one of the pockets. Curious, he opened it up and discovered a book inside. His expression soured as he realized it was a magazine that his father had snuck into his luggage. "This stupid oyaji", he muttered under his breath.

Just as Ryoma was about to stash the magazine away, there was a knock on his door. Startled, he quickly hid the magazine under his bed, closing it with the bed curtain. When he opened the door, he found Sakuno standing there, holding a plate of sweet mochi dessert and some books.

"Can I come in?" Sakuno asked.

Ryoma opened the door wider, "Sure."

Sakuno explained that her grandmother had sent over the dessert for Ryoma and that she had brought her notes from her first and second year for him to use. Grateful, Ryoma accepted the offerings and thanked her.

"Thanks, Ryuzaki."

Sakuno nervously approached Ryoma, her heart pounding in her chest as she mustered up the courage to ask him the question that had been plaguing her mind since the incident earlier that day.

"A-ano, Ryoma-kun, can I see your arm?" She asked, her voice barely above a whisper.

"Why?"

"Uh, well I'm afraid I bruised your arm. Your arm is important to play tennis."

"I'm fine, don't worry."

"But I still want to see it."

Ryoma sighed. He didn't want to argue with this girl, so he just showed his arm.

As she examined his arm, Sakuno couldn't help but feel a rush of excitement at being this close to Ryoma. She could see the veins running beneath his skin, the muscles flexing as he moved his arm. It nearly made her drool with fascination.

Quickly realizing that she was getting dirty in her thoughts, Sakuno pulled back, her face flushing with embarrassment. "Your arm really looks fine, Ryoma-kun.", she stammered.

"Told you."

When Sakuno listened carefully, she noticed his voice was kind of different from when they were in junior high. His voice had deepened and become more manly, sending a shiver down her spine. She blushed furiously as she listened to him talk, her heart beating faster with each word he spoke. As they chatted, Sakuno mentioned about their living together.

"Ryoma-kun, is it okay if we keep our living situation a secret?"

"Why?" Ryoma replied, didn't understand why they should do that.

"Well, I...I just think it's better that way."

Feeling confused, Ryoma agreed without fully understanding why. He thought she must had some reasons to hide it. Sakuno's face beamed.

"Thanks Ryoma-kun. Ano.. why are you return to Japan suddenly? I thought you will stay in US for good."

"My mom wants me to graduate school in Japan at least once, so.."

"Oh, I see. Well, should I help you unpacking?" Sakuno said while lingering her eyes to see what she should help with.

"It's okay. I'm almost finished." Ryoma said, make Sakuno just nodded.

While Ryoma enjoyed the sweet mochi dessert, Sakuno noticed a magazine peeking out from under his bed. Curious, she reached for it and pulled it out, only to be met with a half-naked woman on the cover. "Ryuzaki, don't look at it." Ryoma panicked and tried to grab it back, but it was too late.

Blushing furiously, Sakuno couldn't believe what she was seeing. Ryoma quickly shoved the magazine back into the drawstring bag, "It's not mine." He said, but Sakuno still stunned, probably still shocked.

To lighten the mood, Ryoma decided to call his father on speakerphone. His father pickep up and Ryoma quickly said, "You stupid oyaji." Sakuno couldn't helped but sweat-dropped with Ryoma's audacity.

Nanjirou laughed. "So you found it."

"I'm going to throw this shit to trash." He said with glared on his look.

"What? Don't be like that. That one is limited edi-" When Nanjiroh was about to finished his words, Ryoma hung up.

"See, it isn't mine."

Sakuno couldn't help but giggled at the exchange between father and son. "Okay, I believe you." Then she continued giggled.

"What are you laughing about?" Asked Ryoma, he still didn't believe that Sakuno believed him.

"No, it just that, it's been so long I didn't see your frustrated face." Sakuno said while made a soft gaze.

Ryoma blushed a bit. He looked away to hide his embarrassment.

Sumire sat comfortably on the couch in the living room, sipping her warm tea as she listened to the sound of Sakuno's laughter drifting down from the upstairs. A smile tugged at the corners of Sumire's lips as she thought to herself, 'Looks like the house will be lively from now on.'